Green house design using termite mound architecture and constituents

1. Introduction
Distinct genera of termites create
mounds with unique architecture
across the Indian subcontinent.
Mound-building termites are of
paramount importance in the
maintenance of the delicate
ecological balance in the forest
ecosystem. Given the preexisting
phylogenetic evaluation in my lab of
Indian mound-building termites, I
propose to develop a ‘green building’
mimicking the architecture and
constituents of the termite mounds in
collaboration with experts in
architecture and materials sciences.

2. Various kinds of Mounds across Western Ghats

3. Mound building Western Ghats(Kund) mound 3
Mound Building Maravante Seaside
Mound building Western Ghats(Kund) mound 5
Small mounds Saligrama
Mound building Western Ghats(Kund) mound 4
Mound building NCBS campus Bangalore
Odontotermes obesus Amab-TE-2 KY474376.1
Mound building Nagarahole mound 4
Mound building Nagarahole mound 1
Mound building Western Ghats(Kund) mound 1
Mound building Western Ghats(Kund) mound 2
Non Mound Building Western Ghats(Kund)
Non Mound Building Saligrama
Odontotermes hainanensis IS107
Odontotermes minutus dka161
Non mound building Manipal 1
Non mound building Manipal 2
Odontotermes longignathus NC 034130.1
Odontotermes longignathus KY224665.1
Odontotermes formosanus
Odontotermes obesus KY224493.1
Odontotermes obesus NC 034027.1
Odontotermes obesus KY224406.1
Odontotermes latericius DKA81
Odontotermes badius ZA7
Macrotermes barneyi NC 018599.1
Macrotermes natalensis NC 025522.1
Mound-
building
termites
across
Western
Ghats

4. Objectives
● Understand the mound architecture
and maintenance of air-
conditioning system inside the
mound
● Develop a ‘green building’ by
mimicking the architecture and
constituents of a termite mound:
Bio-mimicry
●
Has been tried before: Eastgate
Centre in Zimbabwe. Only
mimicked the air-conditioning
system. Was expensive to build

5. Description of the concept
➢ Will have an intrinsic air-conditioning system.
➢ Potentially provide protection from excessive heat
generated outside, as in case of a fire.
➢ Will afford resistance to earthquakes.
➢ No bricks will be used in the green building.
➢ Mound soil will be used to build the ‘green building’
in stead of cement.
➢ Instead of the traditional use of iron and steel, I
propose to employ a network of earthen tubes
made of the soil components of a termite mound,
toasted in sunlight.

6. ➢ The network of earthen tubes will be cemented by
polysaccharide glues – such as ‘Glomalin’
➢ Passive cooling
- Earthen shafts/chimneys for heating purpose
- Materials with high specific heat (wet mud + sand
clay) for cooling purpose
➢ The mound soil is unique – Boluses, building blocks
of a mound
Description of the concept contd.
Worker termites
agglomerate red soil
into boluses using
their saliva, likely
containing soil glues

7. Tentative designs
of the green
building (by a
non-architect!)

8. Physical properties of boluses
●
Compressive strength of the ‘soil’ by itself: 1.4 N/sq
mm compared to 2.7N/sq mm of concrete (cement +
sand)
●
Tensile strength of the ‘soil’ by itself: 0.50 N/sq mm
compared to 1.50 N/sq mm of concrete (cement +
sand)
Chemical properties of blouses
●
Sandy soil with ~70% silica
●
High Mg+2 content
- Tighten the soil; Restricts air passage through the wall
●
High Fe+2 content
- Reduces the porosity of the soil: thus restricts air
passage; provides stability

9. The effect of the concept
➢ By virtue of its design and raw materials used for its
construction, the ‘green building’ will have its intrinsic
heating/cooling system, making the use of air-
conditioners redundant.
➢ The escalating use of air conditioners is a major driving
force for global warming due to the high emissions of
CO2.
➢ This green building design can arrest the menace of
global warming by reducing the emission of CO2
significantly.
➢ Can be safely built in earthquake prone areas.
➢ Will be made up of cheap, eco-friendly materials.

10. Who are the stakeholders?
● Construction companies
● Civil engineers interested in green and alternative
form of building construction
● Architects interested in developing green building
designs
● Government agencies and NGOs interested in eco-
friendly building materials
Who should finance the project?
The stakeholders, or anyone who is interested in bio-
mimicry.
The budget will be ~50 lakhs including physio-
chemical analysis of blouses and biochemical analysis
of termite saliva.

11. What need to happen before the
concept becomes reality?
● Identification of the termite groups that build air-
conditioned mounds.
● Biochemical analysis of termite saliva, the
potential source of soil glue.
● Detailed physiochemical analysis of the mound
soil in collaboration with material scientists.
● Large scale in vitro production of blouses.
● Academia + Industry + Architecture firm
collaboration
●
And above all – Funding for the project!!!!

12. tAcknowledgements
●
Manipal Centre for Natural Sciences (MCNS), MAHE,
Manipal start up funding for termite phylogenetics
research
●
Presidency College, Kolkata, India
●
West Bengal State University, India
●
National Test House, Kolkata, India
Recognitions
UGC student grant, 2008
Finalist of
Greenathlon, 2009
Platform talk in European
Entomology Congress,
2014